Vacuum cleaning apparatus.



J. T. ATWOOD. VACUUM CLEANING APPARATUS. APPLIUATION FILED an a, 1911.

Patented Mar. 17, 1914.

2] mm w tax ffv JAMES THOMAS ATWQOI), 0F ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS.

VACUUM CLEANING APPARATUS.

LOH'QJ 27.

Specification of Letters Patent.

atented M ar. 17, 1914.

Application filed. May 2, 1911. Serial No. 624,615.

To all whom, it may concern p Be it known that '.l. Jun-1s THQMAS A1 woon, a citizen ot the United States; ot

America, residing at Rockford, county of innebagro, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Vacuum Cleaning Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to vacuum cleaning apparatus.

The object oi the invention is to improve apparatus of this class without changing either the general CUHSll'tlCtlUIl or principle of operation now comn'iouly employed. 1 attain this object by the use oi certain features which when applied to cooperate with the elements ()fVtlClltlIll clcaninp apparatus, pert'orm important functions and add materially to the value of the apparatus as a whole. 7

In the pneumatic cleaning of carpets, rugs and like articles, it is found that they will ordinarily withstand rough treatment, with out showing wear, but delicate fabrics and similar articles require more or less care in handling and it is therct ore desirable, to provide for varying, the "flow of air and regulating it in accordance with the character ot' the articles to be cleaned. It is further desirable in apparatus of this class, to maintain the connections and particularly the air pump, tree and clear of any and all accunuilalion or deposit of dirt or dust particles passing through the same with the air, in order to avoid clogging, choking and destructive wear between the moving parts thereof.

As it is practically impossible to avoid the presence of the finer dust and dirt particles in the air passing through the pump, accurate fittings cannot be employed to advantage and to preventleakage and loss of e'tlieieney which would otherwise result, it is necessary to provide for sealing the pump iii-such a manner as not. in any way to interfere with its operation. Apparatus of this class being intended for household cleaning, is usually operated by persons unaccustomed to handling and controlling machinery and its success'l ul use depends largely upon the ease and convenience with which. it may be employed, its frccdtan from con'qilicatim and bewildering regulating means, etc, and provision is accmrdingzly made for causing the added features of improvcim-nt to operate automatically.

Apparatus suitable for meeting the above requirianents, is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 1 wish it understood, however, that i do not limit myself to the exact form or arrangci'ncut of the details shown, as various changes may be made therein or the features of improvement applied to other types oil apparatus, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a view in elevation with parts shown in section, illustratin the application of my improven'ients, and l ig. Qis a detail sectional view of the pump and connections.

Referring now to the drziwings, 1 represeats a liquid containing tank or receptacle, which may be of any desired form but is preferably given the shape of a chambered base casting, suitable for containing a body of liquid 2. An inlet opening is provided at 3, which is hooded by means of a cooperating deflector 4, to direct the incoming flow in the direction of or against the adjacent end wall of the tank, for a purpose to be later on described. Ate, above the surface of the liquid, and near the end of the tank opposite the inlet opening, there is 'an air outlet, direct to the atmosphere and 7 is a drain, through which'thc liquid, together with all matter settling in the bottom of the tank, may be drawn oli'. Windows 8 are provided in each end of the tank, through which the condition of the liquid may be observed. l

A. pump 9, preferably of the rotary type. is mounted upon the tank and is connected to deliver through the inlet opening 3 thereof. The pump is driven by a motor 10, also mounted on the tank. Leading to the inlet side of the pump, there is a suction connection consisting of two sets of connections, one for air and the other for liquid. The air connections comprise a main line of piping; 11, which may extend to any number of the floors of a building, such main line having connections 12, at each floor which terminate in any form of vacuum cleaning tool 13. Under the action of the pump, atlnosphcric air, laden with dust and dirt particles is drawn in through the cleaning -ti o l; and passes by way of the connection ii. to the main line of piping 11, by which it i delivered into a suitable dry (lust collector it where the oarser particles of dust and dirt are caught and held. From the the pump dust collector, the air, charged with the finer dust particles, goes direct to the pump through a pipe 15, which discharges it into the tank, and after being there relieved of practically all contained remaining dust particles, as in well known vacuum cleaning apparatus, escapes through an outlet opening to the atmosphere. The liquid connection consists of a pipe 16 leading from a point near the bottom of the tank to the air pipe 15. Through this connection 16, the liquid is drawn from the tank to the inlet side of the pump, by the action of the pump and after passing through the same, is returned to the tank, being discharged with the air through the inlet opening thereof. The connection 16, may be of such diameter as to render the flow of air through the pump ineilective for cleaning purposes and in order to regulate and control the quantity of liquid passing, a valve 17 is provided in the pipe, which may be set to adapt the ilow of air to the character of the articles to be cleaned. The liquid in passing through acts to free it of all accumulation of dust and dirt particles carried in by the air and at the same time increases the efli-,

ciency of the pump, by sealing it against leakage. The discharge from the pump into the tank meets the deflector at the inlet opening thereof and by it is directed against the end wall, in a direction opposite o the air outlet; above described, and a separamama? tion ofthe air and the liquid follows asa result of breaking up and spreading the discharge so that very little, if any, liquid is carried outward with the escaping air.

The tank being practicallyclosed to the escapeof sound, the deflector co-acts therewith and serves the further purpose of mufiiing the discharge, thus doing away with the noise, which is one of the most objectionable features in the use of vacuum cleaning apparatus for household Work.

The method of operation and the many important advantages of my invention will be apparent from theforegoing description. Having, therefore, described my inven tion, I claim: f

In a vacuum cleaning system, a suction member provided'intermcdiate its ends with a dust collector, a liquid containing chamber open to the atmosphere, a pump interposed between the suction member and the chamber and discharging air from said suction member into sald liquid containing chamber, and a suction connection from said liquid containing chamber to a point in said suction member between, the dust collector and the inlet side of said pump.

In testimony whereof, I aiiix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

, JAMES THOMAS ATWOOD. Vitnesses:

ARTHUR Huzsrmzss, M. A. KJnLLcnEN. 

